Double consonants are a major nuisance in English spelling. Most of them are quite unnecessary (unecesary?). I would like to see them all done away with.
But there is one double consonant that the English will cling to. This is the double L. Over on the other side of the pond, they insist that the L has to be doubled before a vowel suffix. Unfortunately, the rule states that the accent must be on the preceding vowel. With “traveller,” the accent is on the A syllable, not the first E syllable, so that extra L is not needed. But in England they seem to want that L anyway.
This double L can also be seen in words such as “woollen,” “chilli,” “cancelled,” and “modelling,” all of which really only need a single L. But let us in the States not boast about our superior spelling.
For some weird and wacky reason, most American dictionaries spell half a dozen words with a double L whereas the English spell them with just one L. Examples are “willful/wilful,” “skillful/skilful,” “fulfill/fulfil,” “enroll/enrol,” “install/instal,” “distill/distil,” and “instill/instil.” Where these words are concerned, the English are correct.
So what do we do with this Ell-ish shambles? Less is more! Don’t waste time and ink on redundant letters. Both American and English dictionaries agree that “beautiful,” ”useful,” “always,” “handful,” “almighty,” “already,” “altogether,” “welcome,” “fulsome, ” “thoughtful,” and “welfare” are correctly spelled without an extra L. So the precedent has been set and all those double L words will eventually lose that extra L.
When in doubt or if you have a choice, use just one L. Welcome and farewel, trave
But there is one double consonant that the English will cling to. This is the double L. Over on the other side of the pond, they insist that the L has to be doubled before a vowel suffix. Unfortunately, the rule states that the accent must be on the preceding vowel. With “traveller,” the accent is on the A syllable, not the first E syllable, so that extra L is not needed. But in England they seem to want that L anyway.
This double L can also be seen in words such as “woollen,” “chilli,” “cancelled,” and “modelling,” all of which really only need a single L. But let us in the States not boast about our superior spelling.
For some weird and wacky reason, most American dictionaries spell half a dozen words with a double L whereas the English spell them with just one L. Examples are “willful/wilful,” “skillful/skilful,” “fulfill/fulfil,” “enroll/enrol,” “install/instal,” “distill/distil,” and “instill/instil.” Where these words are concerned, the English are correct.
So what do we do with this Ell-ish shambles? Less is more! Don’t waste time and ink on redundant letters. Both American and English dictionaries agree that “beautiful,” ”useful,” “always,” “handful,” “almighty,” “already,” “altogether,” “welcome,” “fulsome, ” “thoughtful,” and “welfare” are correctly spelled without an extra L. So the precedent has been set and all those double L words will eventually lose that extra L.
When in doubt or if you have a choice, use just one L. Welcome and farewel, trave
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